


The Family Wedding

by CloudyWithAChanceOfCreativity, spiritfox90



Category: Resident Evil - All Media Types
Genre: F/M, It will be awhile until Ada comes in please be patient, Leon's family, Leon's family learn to cope with the fact that Leon might secretly (to them) be a BAMF, Leon-I'mnotanagentofthegovernmentwhatareyoutalkingabout-Kennedy, Only sometimes tho, we think we are funny
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-03-07
Updated: 2019-05-30
Packaged: 2019-11-13 07:44:34
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 4
Words: 20,558
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18027623
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/CloudyWithAChanceOfCreativity/pseuds/CloudyWithAChanceOfCreativity, https://archiveofourown.org/users/spiritfox90/pseuds/spiritfox90
Summary: Leon's brother is getting married to a woman he just met, his family doesn't know he's an agent, and now he has to go home for more than a couple days and pretend he's normal again. What could possibly go wrong?





	1. Hide Yo Guns, Hide Yo Herbs, Hide Yo Bag-

**Author's Note:**

> Hello! This is a collaborated fic between my friend spiritfox90 and I, it's the first time either of us have ever done a joint fic as well as something for the RE fandom so I really hope it's well received. We have plans for this one, and we hope you guys like the family we invented for Leon and the story we are about to write. Let us know if you manage to spot any grammar mistakes or if you have any suggestions, constructive feedback is welcome! Thanks for reading!

It all started with a letter from home. The letter had been forcibly shoved underneath the apartment door when the landlord had evidently become fed up with his tenant whom, despite nagging, had failed to pick up his mail from the front desk. 

The familiar address scrawled across the envelope had left Leon with a sinking feeling like his insides were twisting. The feeling made no sense and yet, in response, he had found himself stalling in opening the damn thing. As a result, its existence was forgotten. The envelope was stuffed into the bottom of one of his hip pouches and quickly covered with guns, ammo rounds, skeleton keys and medicine.  

It wasn’t as if he had “purposely” ignored the letter or that it was his intention to forget it, but rather that the timing had been poor. Leon had already been on his way out the door, preparing to dive straight into hell again. He had just received word from Hunnigan that he was needed “ASAP” in some secluded corner of the globe. Another outbreak needed to be contained. 

It was much later, down in the depths of yet another underground sewer when Leon was fishing blindly through his pack for his ammo, that he was reminded of its existence.  

The weary agent tugged it out sharply and examined it with his flashlight. With the quick decision that it was now or never, Leon ripped open the crinkled envelope with his teeth. He made a futile attempt to avoid staining the paper with the grime he found himself covered with as he unfolded it from its casing, an effort that was all in vain as smudges had already began to make their presence known across all corners of the page. It was his mother’s handwriting that greeted him, a barely legible cursive script flowing across the page that almost appeared as if she had been writing with her non-dominant hand. He strained his eyes under the old dimming flashlight as he read. 

“ _Dearest Leon_ ,” It started out, sickeningly sweet as could be, Leon resisted the urge to roll his eyes. 

“ _Hope you are doing well sweetie... We wanted to let you know that we really want you to come home this Sunday for the p_ _re-_ _wedding party and we hope you will be able to make it despite your “work trip”. It will mean so much to your brother for you to be there! We are all missing you dearly!_ ” 

A loud crash somewhere off to the right had Leon pausing to scan the area before dismissing it and continuing on. He figured he’d be ready by the time whatever it was made it anywhere near him anyway.  

“ _Your father’s hip replacement surgery went well, he is still on pain medications but he is doing much better! He said t_ _hat he_ _might have a job offer lined up for you too at a nearby security facility... His friend Robert owns the place and we know how much you would like to get back “into the field_ ”  _after what happened in Raccoon City, I know you still don’t want to talk about it._ ”  

Leon sighed and tried not to pull out any hair in frustration, it was a recurring theme in his family since he dropped his so-called budding career as a cop after the incident in Raccoon City. Despite the fact that he was making plenty of money, his family consistently questioned the fake career his agency set up as his cover and insisted he come home and work some benign security job. The tired agent resisted the urge to toss the paper. There would be no recovering it if he threw it down in frustration. 

 _“_ _No doubt Cynthia wants to see you too! We all are hoping to get word that you will arrive in time to see the festivities! We love you!_  

 _XO_ _XO,_  

 _Mom_ _”_  

Leon stared at the words for a moment longer, his eyes darting back over the script with a sigh, the paper crumpled slightly in his hand as he lowered it.  

 _Of course, the wedding._ He had forgotten completely.  

His brother, Samuel, was getting married to a rather eccentric woman named Leslie that he met while traveling at some airport bar. It had come out of the left field but the family as a whole was trying to take it in stride and be supportive.  

Samuel had a history of poor taste in women, something of which made the fact that Leon had yet to meet Leslie all the more unnerving. Anything Leon knew about the woman was learnt through phone calls and letters. For the most part his family seemed to dance around the subject.  

It left Leon hoping that this time Samuel had chosen a bit more carefully but doubtful that anything good was going to come of their marriage. It didn’t help that his sister, Cynthia, seemed to hate the lady’s guts. A fact that was admittedly not a promising sign.  

Still, there was no way he was planning on missing the event. 

Leon stuffed the letter back in his hip pouch. It took up space in his arsenal but he figured that stopped mattering about fifteen minutes ago after he used half of his supplies to fend off an unexpected horde. He was down to his last few bullets and there was still another infected moaning about the sewers he currently roamed.  

“Well, time to clock in.” Leon muttered as he cocked his pistol, reloading what spare bullets he had left. He tried to ignore the squelching of the muck coating the sewer’s surface as he moved forward. Leon narrowed his eyes, surveying the dark tunnel as the voice of the dead echoed off the walls. The sound reverberated around him, bouncing and disorienting, its source lost as he twisted about in attempt to locate it. It was a loud splash, just a couple feet in front of him, as the infected stumbled that gave its position away.  

Through the darkness he could see it staggering toward him with rotting flesh and oozing a foul odor that Leon would probably never become accustomed to. He scrunched his nose up in disgust and resisted the urge to gag. Instead, Leon raised his pistol, aiming for its’ swaggering head as it limped toward him eerily.  

“Sorry, but I have a plane to catch and I’m on overtime.” The corny words unfortunately lost on the zombie as he aimed his 9mm and fired.  

The bullet soared straight and true, finding its home in the sorry creature’s skull. The impact knocking it backwards off of its feet, followed by the nasty snap of its neck echoing throughout the tunnel. It fell with a sickening flop into the murky water.  

Leon watched its body float for several seconds, before concluding the threat had been dealt with and lowering his gun. He wiped the perspiration from his brow and then cringed as he felt more grime stick to his face, the smell unpleasant but unfortunately familiar. That was that.  

 _Mission accomplished._ He thought bitterly. 

As if waiting for its cue, the remaining adrenalin seeped out of his body, and all at once Leon felt like he’d been hit by a truck. He felt tired, sick and achy from the long hours and endless battles with the unfortunate victims of this week's virus. His job was as demanding as jobs came and it was missions like this one that made a point to remind him.  

He replaced his gun into his holster and tried not to think about his injured side as he began the long trek back out of the sewers and to the promise land that was his ride out of here; a damaged rental car. The agency would take care of the costs.  

“Hunnigan, the town has been cleared and the sample found.” Leon spoke through his com while he sank into the car seat with a quiet groan. He held the small vial of death up into the light seeping through the windshield, the cause of wiping yet another town off the map in the name of deformed B.O.W.s. 

“Understood, I’ll send in the cleanup crew.” Came the woman’s quick and professional reply. 

Leon just closed his eyes and tried to get what little rest he could in the condition he was, “Better make it snappy, I’ve got a plane to catch.” 

“A plane?” 

“Yep, guess I’m finally cashing in on all my vacation days. Family event, want to tag along as my plus two?” A playful smirk slowly made its way across his face, he could practically feel Ingrid Hunnigan’s exasperation from here. 

“Try to remember you are supposed to be a professional.” 

 

* * *

 

 

Leon looked worse for wear when he finally limped into the airport hours later with dark bags settling under his eyes. He had ensured that everything was settled with the lost town and gone back to his motel long enough to clean up, patch up his wounds, and check out. Leon was ready to go board the plane and pass out for the rest of the day. Still, he could argue that he has definitely had worse missions in the past. 

He set his check-in bag filled with heavy artillery on the counter with a loud thump alarming the young girl who was working at the desk. “Can you take care of this for me?” he asked flashing a badge. She swallowed and nodded.   

Going through security turned out to be a mess, it was only after going through the metal detector did it occur to Leon, he forgot about one of the knives that he had habitually strapped up his sleeve. The security was none too patient or gentle with the way they searched him nor were they having any level of explanation he could offer. The entire affair left him with a missed flight and it was two more hours before he was able to board another one. He remembered last minute to shoot his family a message as he shuffled into the confining mode of transport. 

Leon sat down next to a small woman wearing a dress one shade away from a certain alluring spy’s favorite kind of red. His head was throbbing but he ignored the growing headache as he watched in his peripheral vision the woman shifting away from him. She certainly wasn’t subtle like Ada in the way that she eyed the cuts and bruises littering his visible skin.  

A baby several seats over started to scream as soon as the plane took off, its earsplitting shrill cries repeatedly hammered into Leon’s ears. The blond agent partially slid down his seat and thumped his head against the head rest, his tired red eyes shutting in despair. No rest for the wicked it seemed. 

 

* * *

 

 

Images of gruesome monsters and blood running down the walls haunted Leon’s dreams as he slept restlessly. Lickers crawled toward him with their nasty tongues twisting and tasting the air, stumbling and crawling blindly as they attempted to locate him. Decapitated officers impaled on rocks appeared as he seemed to zoom through the tunnels flying directly toward a wall of nails. 

Leon jolted awake in his airplane seat to see his neighbor staring at him a bit alarmed.  

 _Had he been talking in his sleep?_ Leon wondered, he nodded at her feeling a bit flushed and straightened up. It seemed futile but he attempted to try and make himself presentable, a feat that proved to be nearly impossible. It didn’t help that he somehow felt more tired now than before his nap.  

It didn’t take long to gather that the plane was descending soon, landing in the nearest city to his hometown. Flight attendants were walking up and down the aisle to remind passengers to put their seat trays up and reset their chairs. Leon put his chair up when he was told and edgily eyed one of the attendants as she brushed past him before squinting out the passenger window. 

“Do you have the time?” Leon gruffly asked the woman without really looking at her.  

“It’s almost six.”  

 Leon winced as he dug through his carry on for his phone, he was running later than he had initially thought. “Thanks.” he said, turning on his phone to scroll through his missed messages. It would seem his brother started one of those annoying group chats again that inevitably would eat up his battery life. He wondered how long this one would last before everyone inevitably blocked him again. The many messages began to stream in slowly as his phone downloaded them. 

 _“Your flight was delayed?...Twice? Bad luck little brother. C drew the short straw so she’s picking you up.”_  

 _“Hey Leon! Ignore Sammie, I’m excited to see you! Text me when you land.”_  

 _“Oh btw, mom said she doesn’t want you to do any drugs during the trip.”_  

 _“Wtf when has Leon ever done drugs??”_  

 _“There were apparently plants in his bag last trip??? Smokin them herbs baby bro?_ _😉_ _"_  

 _“Omfg”_  

Leon rolled his eyes and typed out a short message in response before standing to collect his things and slowly shuffle off the plane like the rest of the travel weary passengers. 

“ _Just landed.”_  

 _“And is mom going through my bags whenever I visit?”_  

Leon inhaled the fresher air the minute he was out of the tunnel, wasting no time he began to make his way towards the exit. He fiddled with his hair as his phone went off again, it was sticking up oddly again. 

 _“_ _Maybe? Why you got something to hide??_ _😉_ _😉”_  

 _“Sam please do me a favor and stop talking right now. I’m out the gate, C.”_  

 _“I see you!”_  

Leon looked up just in time to see his sister jumping at him, he wasted no time in dropping his bags and catching her with a grunt. Years of training and instincts restrained so as not to hurt her.  _It's just my sister_ , he told himself. 

“Leon! You’re home!” She squealed as she wrapped her arms and legs around him and hugged him like an overgrown koala bear. 

Leon smiled, “I know, it’s been a long time.” he said, shifting his grip to hug her back. He ignored the way his side screamed, hoping his baby sister wouldn’t notice. 

“That’s a bit of an understatement.” Cynthia mumbled into his shoulder. 

Leon laughed, “Are you planning on hugging me all day or can I put you down now?” 

His sister just hugged him tighter and buried her face in his shoulder like a child. His side screamed in response. 

“Come on C my arms are starting to hurt. You’re heavy.” Leon teased, smile twitching just a little at the edges in pain. 

Cynthia gasped in fake offense as she leaned back and shoved his shoulder playfully. 

Leon grunted again, thanking his lucky stars that she still seemed to miss that the noise was out of pain. 

“Bull, you have arm muscles like a log.” She said as she loosened her grip and allowed Leon to set her down. “I thought you worked some sort of lame office job?” 

 _Sweet relief_ , Leon thought. “Sam works a lame office job and I don’t see anyone giving him crap.” 

“Yeah but like, that’s Sammie for you, besides,” A slow smirk crossed Cynthia’s face, “Sammie has a love life bro.” 

“Ok well this conversation is over, where’s your car?” 

Cynthia cackled. “It’s this way. You know, I had to actually pay for parking, so that means you’re going to have to buy me a drink.”  

“You’re telling me the wedding isn’t going to have an open bar? What kind of wedding is this?” Leon bantered. 

“Oh, we’re gonna need drinks  _before_  the wedding happens. Believe me.” 

“That bad, huh?” 

“Just you wait until you meet her.” Cynthia said as she held the door open for Leon. 

“Gee sis, you sure know how to reassure a guy.” 

Cynthia shook her head, her eyes rolling off to the side as she spoke under her breath, “She’s batshit crazy, I swear.” 

“Well...wouldn’t be the first crazy woman I've ever encountered.” 

“What was that?” 

Leon just chuckled to himself, “Nothing, nothing.” 

Leon let Cynthia move ahead of him as soon as they were outside. With her back turned, he allowed himself a moment to grimace and place a hand against his burning side. He touched the tender wound, wondering if his stitches had split, maybe a bit. 

 _Dammit._  The last thing he needed to do was start bleeding on everyone. He quickly looked up and rearranged his face as he soon as he saw her turning her head to glance back at him. 

 “Are you coming lazy bones?” Cynthia asked playfully.  

“Yes, yes I’m coming.” Leon said putting on a forced grin and catching up with her. He subtly swung his carry-on bag over his shoulder to disguise what felt like a damp spot staining his shirt, and watched with a small smile as his sister practically skipped across the parking lot. 

Cynthia seemed cheerful and happy to see him. She always was whenever he came home. The kind of welcome that never failed to remind him he didn’t come home enough.  _How long ha_ _d_ _it been since last time?_  

Leon felt a twinge of guilt for always lying to her. She wouldn’t have even known what had happened if he’d vanished in the sewers, slaughtered by a licker or some other monstrosity.  

What would she had thought if he had never walked off the plane to meet her? They likely wouldn’t have recovered his body. No one would have known where he had gone. They would have looked for him and discovered that his entire life had been fabricated. The business he claimed he worked for didn’t exist. Who would tell his family? Certainly not the D.S.O.   
   
“You okay bro?” Cynthia asked looking back at him with a bit of concern. 

 Leon was jolted from his reverie, “Yeah... just tired.” he smiled.  

Cynthia nodded eyeing him until she seemed satisfied with his answer and led him to her car. “You can put your bag in the trunk if you like.” Cynthia said as she unlocked the vehicle with her key fob.  

Leon knew he was bleeding again, he didn’t want his baby sister to see.  _God how would she react if she knew how beat up I actually am? What would she think?_  He clutched his bag closer to him. “Oh no, no... it’s fine.” He declined shaking his head.  

“Sheesh, fine... don’t tell me Sammie was on to something.” She laughed clearly not serious and earning a weak smile from Leon in response.  

“No drugs I swear.” He said earnestly, hopping into the passenger seat quickly before the conversation could continue. 

The ride back didn’t involve much talking, mostly just his sister wailing the lyrics to Queen on full blast and making dramatic faces at him in accordance to the lyrics when she wasn’t focused on the road. 

Leon watched in bemused silence, this...this was normal. He hadn’t felt this normal in a long time. 

He forgot how nice normal could be. 

When they were almost home Cynthia reached over to turn the volume down half way through Bohemian Rhapsody. 

Leon raised an eyebrow, “Wow, did someone die? I thought you said it was a federal offense to interrupt this song.” 

Cynthia made a sarcastic face, “Ha ha, no. It’s just that we’re almost home and I wanted to talk to you about dad before we get there.” Her eyes darted to his face before quickly returning to the road, “It’s nothing particularly bad per-say.” 

“Ok...” 

“He’s been really grumpy since his surgery and I just know that he’s going to get on you about the whole cop career thing again...” Cynthia glanced back at Leon before switching lanes on the near empty road, “-so like maybe try not to get into a fight with him this year. Please.” 

Leon frowned, “You know I'm never the one who starts those.” 

“I know. He just really wanted you to be the next Kennedy on the force. I guess it’s hard for him to let it go.” 

“It’s been years.” 

“I know.” 

Leon sighed, glancing out the window at the open fields before him. A small sign that read, “Welcome to Triston! Population 200.” zoomed in and out of sight. 

“I mean-” Cynthia started up hesitantly, “maybe it would help if you actually told us about your job?” 

Leon flinched, “What’s there to talk about?” he answered quietly, “I file papers, go on trips to promote the company. It’s nothing special.” 

Silence stretched in the car, Leon could practically feel his sister’s disbelief like a physical presence. 

“Right.” Cynthia said quietly clearly dropping the subject for the time being as she turned into a long winding drive way, “Well, we’re here...Welcome home Leon.”  

 

 


	2. Pssst Let's Just Go To Sonic

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Good ole' family drama am I right?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> We're back! Sorry for the wait but here it is, hope you guys like it! Thank you to everyone who has left a kudos or comment so far! We read each and every one and they really help motivate us. Speaking of comments let us know what you think of the family! Who's your favorite? Do you hate anyone?

Seeing the family house was like no time had passed at all from his last visit. It stood tall with red brick and white shutters and a dark roof. Leon could see that mom’s garden was still flourishing as it always had been.  

Memories came back to the tired agent of the times spent on the large front porch, drawing on the sidewalk with chalk, or getting yelled at by their father for climbing up on the roof. He could almost still hear his father yelling now, “How’d you even get up there?!” 

Leon smiled softly, feeling himself at ease with the familiar sights and smells of his family home. The old apple tree still stood in the front yard, he used to sneak apples from it when he was really little, collecting them in his bag for pretend picnics with his siblings. In the backyard they created “tents” out of cardboard boxes, practicing magic tricks and putting on shows for their mother. 

“It’s good to be back.” Leon said honestly. It was a rare occurrence these days that he could feel a genuine sentiment like that. When it occurred, it almost made him want to hang everything up, run away from what responsibilities he had, forget everything that he had experienced and take the security job.  

If he had been given the choice in the first place, if he hadn’t been sat down and told there was only one way this would all end for him, would he have still gone down the path he did? Or would he be leading a peaceful life like this with his family instead? Visiting home regularly and taking each step without the weight of the world on his shoulders. Would he have fallen in love with a woman who could love him back?

“Come on,” 

Leon blinked back into awareness at the sound of his sister’s voice.  _Stupid, there’s no forget_ _t_ _ing the things I’ve seen or the life I’ve led._  

“They’re all anxious to see you.” Cynthia said with a small smile forming across her face. 

“Right.” Leon replied, his mind returned to the stain on his side, he would have to deal with that quickly before getting barraged by the family. That would be difficult, he thought, especially if they were as eager to see him as Cynthia has insisted.  

Leon climbed out of the car following his sister up to the house. The two were obvious siblings as they looked quite a bit alike with the same color hair and eyes, both taking more after their mother than father. Though it didn’t really matter who they took after really, the whole town often joked that there was no such thing as an ugly Kennedy. And even though Cynthia had grown up to be a lovely young woman, to the surprise of no one, Leon couldn’t help but still see her as the little girl that used to trail him and beg for piggyback rides. 

“So, who’s all here?” Leon asked, wondering if he would soon meet the blushing bride.  

“Dad, mom and Sammie.” Cynthia said, brushing her blonde hair behind her ears. 

“Where’s uh...?” Leon struggled to remember Samuel’s finance, was it Lynette? Lisa? 

“Leslie?”  

“Yeah.” 

“Oh, she’s vacationing in Vegas with her friends for the bachelorette weekend... If you ask me, I think she just didn’t want to spend the weekend with her in-laws.” Cynthia smirked. 

“Good point, I wouldn’t either if you were my in-laws.”  

Cynthia stuck her tongue out, scrunching her nose, “Aw, working on your comedy routine huh?” She asked in a patronizing tone. 

“Mm, I do my best to switch up my repertoire for you.” 

Leon followed Cynthia up to the porch holding his bag strategically in front of his wound as he waited for her to open up the door.   

“Leon, Cynthia? Is that you two?” He heard his mother call from the kitchen. 

“Who else would it be mom?” Cynthia teased as she entered the threshold, Leon closed the door behind her. 

“Oh! Hold on let me finish up here and–” 

“No rush mom, I’m actually going to run up to my room real quick. You know, freshen up and put my stuff away.” Leon rambled as he shuffled over to the stairs hurriedly, hoping no one would stop him. 

“Do you want me to show–?” Cynthia started. 

Leon chuckled, “I know It’s been awhile since I’ve been home C, but I think I can still find my way to my old bedroom.” Leon called behind him as he fled. 

“Where’s he off to, couldn’t he have said hello first?” Leon heard his dad grumble from the living room. 

Leon had no choice but to ignore his father as he hurried up to his room and closed the door with a huff, while leaning his back against it for a moment in relief he reached down and turned the lock.  

Once ready to stand again he moved to the center of his room. It was like being blasted with the past, so little changed from the bright and young Leon that left with a promising career as a police officer. He had barely glanced at his room the last time he managed to come home. He didn’t like how it failed to feel like his room anymore, it was his and yet he felt like an intruder every time he stepped inside. Granted the whole house felt like that. Nostalgia was painful sometimes. 

He dropped his bag and examined the damage in the mirror. He had a growing blood stain on the front of his shirt. Leon frowned and tugged it off gingerly. He moved his bag on the bed to dig through and began to patch his wound up again with what little supplies he had left inside, gritting his teeth as he sewed himself back together. 

Leon couldn’t help but feel frustrated, the wound would normally have been healed within the hour of getting it had this particular strain of virus not been so strange or if he had had some sort of first aid supplies on him to clean it out and speed it up. He had used up the last of his supply on a room of lickers that had managed to surprise him, he’d have to be quicker next time and not make the same sloppy mistake of rushing through the rooms like he had then.  

Leon had forgotten since Raccoon city what it was like to have to wait for injuries to slowly heal like a normal person. Though learning later that he had a rare level of immunity towards what had allowed the more deadly end of the G-virus to kill most, he had been surprised to learn how much it had physically altered him. Mostly he had a level of endurance and stamina unmatched by any natural human, but he also found he healed faster than the average human by a lot.  

Aware that he needed to hurry before his family grew concerned, Leon slapped a bandage and tape over the annoying lesion and tugged on a new shirt. He’ll have to grab some first aid spray from the corner store sometime tonight so he could be done with the injury, preferably before anyone noticed.  

After shuffling into the small bathroom across the hall to splash some water on his face, the weary blond leaned against the counter and raised his head to glance in the mirror. He looked tired and haggard; it was hard to miss. 

The last mission had taken a bit of a toll on him. He inhaled and exhaled looking at his dripping reflection before he toweled off and returned to his room again for one last task. He needed somewhere to conceal his bag so that no prying eyes would discover his weapons and empty boxes of ammunition. If his mom was going through his bag, the last thing he needed was for her to find him fully loaded. That would require a lot of explaining and if they knew anything, who knows what the D.S.O. would do to them. 

“Leon!” He heard his mother call.  

“Be right there!” He called back as he haphazardly shoved his bag inside the closet, behind a shoe rack. Leon straightened and ran his fingers through his hair feeling slightly flustered. He hastened to the door, quickly unlocked and opened it to find himself face-to-face with a tall, dark haired and (by many ladies' standards, as they never failed to vocalize) “handsome” young man, hand raised as if about to knock. The eldest son, Samuel. 

His older brother’s face split into a wide grin, “Baby brother!” He cried out dramatically as he raised his arms for a “manly” one-armed hug. He wiggled the fingers of one hand as if to say, ' _Come on in’_  and swirled a glass of wine in the other.  

Leon rolled his eyes and tried not to cringe while moving in to accept the hug. It was as awkward as it had always been, complete with Sam slapping him on the back a couple times. 

“Hi Sam.” Leon said with a patient smile waiting to be released, his mind flashing to the ghoulish creatures in the tunnels grabbing him with what remained of their warped and twisted fingers. Leon hands clinched into a fist behind his brother’s back, leaving to blonde to will his fingers to relax in a mini-panic.  

He usually had a day to put himself back together after a mission. 

Samuel pulled back and examined Leon with a smile. Sam didn’t resemble Leon as much as Cynthia did, though they shared some of the same features particularly around the eyes. Samuel took after dad more. However, unlike their stern father he possessed a kinder face with twinkling eyes and a large mischievous grin that appealed to women. He was always the gregarious and popular playboy; it was almost strange to think of him settling down.   
   
“What a treat! I didn’t know if you were even going to make it since, you know, we couldn‘t seem to be able to get in contact with you. Weeks of calling little brother, they send you somewhere without signal?” Samuel said looking jovial swinging around his glass of alcohol.    
   
“Something like that.” Leon muttered under his breath.   
   
“Too bad Leslie isn’t here!” Sam continued, probably not even hearing a word out of Leon’s mouth, “I wanted you two to meet.”  

Leon couldn’t help but think of what Cynthia said and privately wondered if Samuel had grown up at all despite being past thirty. He seemed as youthful as ever, cheeks flushed from the alcohol flowing through his body.  

“Yeah, I heard she was in Vegas.”  

“She is, yeah. It’s too bad, you’d  _love_ her! I was trying to get her to go somewhere a little closer... but you know, go big or go home I guess!” He exclaimed raising his glass as if he were toasting him. The liquid sloshed dangerously close to the edge.  

Leon nodded and smiled politely. “Well, shall we?” Leon asked gesturing down the hall towards the stairs.  

“Oh yeah, dad told me to check on you to make sure you weren’t hitting anything you weren’t supposed to.” Sam winked surreptitiously, patting Leon on the back again. “I told him to stop worrying so much, dad doesn’t know you like I do, bro. You’re not dumb enough to get into the big stuff, am I right?” He grinned stupidly. 

Leon smiled back weakly, Samuel was sometimes a lot to take, especially when he was tired and worse for wear. “Why does everyone think I’m on drugs?” 

Sam stopped mid-step to glance Leon’s way, “You do realize you look like you got mugged right? Or maybe you’re just hungover?” 

Leon didn’t respond, letting his brother continue taking the lead down the hall. 

“You had to be doing something you shouldn’t have to look like that.” Samuel mumbled as he went. 

He had hoped he was being paranoid about it, but it would seem he did in fact look as bad as he felt. He cringed; Dad was going to be glaring at him all night now.  

Admittedly Dad was going to be suspicious no matter what. He could have shown up looking as put together as possible and his father would still interrogate him. In some ways, Leon wondered if he had gotten his suspicious mind from his father, the only one in the family that was adamant that Leon was not being completely honest about his work story. Cynthia wanted to believe in him, Samuel was too irresponsible to care and mom still saw him as a ten-year-old. Dad was never so easy to fool. 

“You might want to lay off the drinks.” Leon commented as Samuel clumsily took to the stairs.  

Sam waved him off, hand flapping dismissively in the air behind him, “Oh, don’t be a party pooper or dad isn’t going to believe  _you’re_ the hardcore drug addict that you are ...  and then how is that going to make  _me_ look?”  

Leon didn’t get long to process the statement before he found himself being punched playfully in the arm. He stiffened. 

“Jeez, I’m kidding, lighten up a little.” Sam said grinning again, he chuckled as he took the stairs two at a time. “I’ve recovered him ladies and gentlemen! The man of the hour! The one and the only!” he announced dramatically to the living room. 

Leon stepped down to the landing humorlessly, standing behind his clown of a brother.  

“Ta-da.” He said tonelessly. 

Cynthia snorted in good humor but otherwise silence prevailed. 

Leon’s father stood with the distinguishing figure of an ex-cop who had gone to seed. He had worked long hours when the kids were younger, practically making his career his entire life. As a result, the kids were not as close with him as maybe they might have been if he had been more present. Father had been strict coming from a military family and he filled the role as the disciplinarian. Mother in contrast had allowed the children to get away with near everything while he was gone at work, they learned fast as kids to refrain from doing behaviors that their father would disapprove of when he was around. 

It’s funny to think Leon had once found him an intimidating figure, one who had made appearances here and there but always valued his job over his family. Of course, this was back when Leon wasn’t working directly under the president himself. Hard to find anyone truly intimidating after you’ve met the guys on top and the monsters that hid below. It was sometimes difficult to find a distinction between them. 

These days Kennedy senior was a retired man, unable to work with his bad hip. You didn’t have to know him well to see he wasn’t very happy about it. This had apparently resulted in many nights snacking and drinking beer. Evidence showing of a crumbling physique brought on by self-abuse of what was once a fit body. Leon wondered if that would someday be his future, if he was so lucky to survive that long. 

His father clenched his jaw as Leon was grabbed by his mother but otherwise said nothing.  

Leon grunted as his mother wrapped her arms around her youngest son with a viper-like grip as if she was frightened that he would disappear again.  

“Hello mom.” he said stiffly tolerating the squishing he had to experience at least once every visit home. He  _had_ missed her though and something about being close to her again comforted him. 

Samuel swaggered past them with a warning, “Mom, don’t or he won’t stay for the wedding!”  

“I haven’t seen your brother in forever though!” She responded with a small laugh as she released Leon. She held him back at arm's length to get a good look at his face. Her eyes scanning back and forth to examine him. She seemed about to say something, probably about his beat-up appearance but eventually she just settled for brushing some hair out of his eyes and saying,” Welcome home baby, we missed you.” 

“Thanks mom” Leon responded back gratefully; voice just as soft as hers. 

Upon glancing his father's way though Leon’s face sunk again, his father stood off to the side arms crossed. As hostile as he had worried he’d be. 

 _The quicker you_ _hop_ _in, the quicker you_ _get_ _out of it._ Leon thought as he approached his father who avoided the stiff hug and shook his hand instead. Somehow the act made the whole exchange more awkward than a hug ever could.  

“Hi dad.” Leon greeted tersely. 

“Leon.” said his father with a stern eye. He had a hint of disapproval in his eyes but he  _thankfully_ didn’t voice it.  

“Well!” Cynthia said clapping her hands loudly once when the silence began to stretch awkwardly, “I don’t know about you guys, but I’m so hungry, I could eat a cow.” 

Samuel swigged the last of his wine and slammed the glass down on one of the end tables, which caused everyone to flinch, especially Leon who thought of strange creaks and gunfire. “I think we are eating a cow Cynth! I swear I smelled steak in the kitchen, right mom?” Sam drawled in a drunken tone.  

“Don’t scuff up the table.” Grumbled the father, eyeing the prized old antique table. 

Their mother huffed in good humor, “Oh, calm down Donovan. That old table is already scuffed up.”  

“Yeah, it’s already scuffed up!” Sam reiterated pointing to visible scratches and stains. 

“Eleanor he’s clearly had too much to drink, why didn’t you cut him off three drinks ago?” 

“I’m not a bartender dear.” their mother said in forced patience. 

Samuel waved them away and swung an arm around Leon’s shoulder, “Oh look at the old married couple bicker!”  

It left the tired agent cringing and wondering how lucky Sam must be that neither of their parents had heard him speak this time, “It must be a reflection of you in twenty years.” Leon replied flatly. 

“If they make it twenty years.” Leon heard Cynthia mutter under her breath as she passed by, making her way to the kitchen. 

“Mom, do you need any help with dinner?” Leon interrupted when he noticed his parent’s voices start to rise as they argued about whether or not they should get a replacement for the old table.  

Eleanor stopped mid-sentence and smiled gratefully at Leon, “Oh! Everything’s already ready. You can help me carry out the food to the table though.”  

 _Conflict avoided; mission accomplished._ Leon thought as he spoke, “Sure thing.”  

His father eyed him when he passed, he heard him mumble something to Cynthia, who had just rejoined the family, clutching bundles of silverware in her hands ready to set the table, but the words were out of grasp. The context was easily predicted however by the subtly annoyed look that crossed Cynthia’s face in response. It was the disapproving look that was specifically crafted for their parents and other “old fashioned” people who were being rude without realizing it. 

“It looks great mom.” Leon complimented instead of acknowledging his father in the other room. He picked up a crockpot of mashed potatoes and tried to join everyone in pretending there was no tension in the air.  

“Thank you dear!” Eleanor smiled at him and patted his cheek before grabbing the gravy and the steak, ready to make her way back to the dining table. 

Like some sort of cue was sent, everyone began to take their seats at the sight of the two. Donovan, of course, was seated at the head of the table, insistent on being in the place of honor. Maybe it was his one last ditch effort to stay in a relevant position of power. Though thinking back, he had always sat there for as long as Leon could remember.   

Leon set down the crockpot that he was carrying, and rolled his eyes at the sounds of delight coming from Samuel on the other side of the table.  

“Mother, it looks incredible!” Sam announced jovially clapping his hands. 

She almost blushed as she thanked him, an act that left Leon to wonder if their dad hadn’t complimented her food in a while. 

Brushing off the thought for another time, Leon sat down next to Cynthia ready to dig in, it had been awhile since he had a proper meal. The airport food consisted of a mundane selection of unappetizing pre-made sandwiches. He didn’t have time to cook himself food more often than not either, nor did he have the motivation when he did. His standards weren’t too high when left alone, he ate whole plants without flinching when it came down to it. 

Donovan cleared his throat and stuck out his hands, “Let’s say grace.”  

The rest of the family followed suit; individual beliefs be damned. Leon took Cynthia’s hand and his mother’s as he lowered his head only mildly listening to the prayer. He felt disconnected to this life which his family had cultivated. He joined in politely with the customary “Amen” and hurried to help himself to some of the dishes like a hungry dog. He ignored the eyes of his father who seemed to glance at him in intervals. It irritated him. It was one of the toxic aspects to the family dynamic that made Leon feel unwelcome and want to stay far away.  

It was also an uncomfortable reminder how much he changed. Where was the young, idealistic Leon that believed in the system? The boy who was ready to believe in a divine being watching his back. The boy who his family, hell the whole town, wholeheartedly believed was going places. They thought he was perfect back then and he had bought in to that in some strange way. It couldn’t have been further from the truth evidently.  

It was on another one of his father’s quick glares that Leon finally glanced up to meet his eyes. Donovan was predictably judging him silently with narrowed eyes, apparently watching him for signs of addiction or for an excuse to draw him aside to question him about his supposed criminal life.  

In contrast, Eleanor was trying to make him feel welcome, almost to an overbearing extent where she was fussing and putting more scoops of potatoes on his plate creating a small mountain.  

“So.” Donovan began.  

 _Here we go._ Leon thought, inwardly groaning. 

“How’s work been?” he asked, looking at Leon carefully. 

Leon chewed his steak under the guise of trying to swallow before answering so that he could craft a response that would satisfy his father, a feat that was none too easy. He should have created a better story on his way home on the plane, but he failed to do so. Far too tired to think ahead. 

“Good, busy... but good.” Leon replied vaguely at long last. “I got sent out of country this past month, a lot of conferences, busy...business.” He finished lamely.  

“Conferences, huh?” Donovan asked unconvinced. “What sort of conference?” 

The table seemed to tense up and Eleanor laughed nervously, sensing the mood shift, “Don, don’t interrogate him at the table.” She said with a playful firmness.  

Leon’s father shrugged, “Who’s interrogating? I'm just asking a simple question.” 

“Dad, we’re trying to have a  _nice_ family meal!” Samuel whined. “Why do you always got to bring up work and be such a killjoy? This is a celebration! Of life!” 

Cynthia side-eyed Leon as if to silently remind them of their conversation in the car.  

Leon pretended he didn’t see and slowly placed his fork down on his plate, the utensil making a quiet plink sound, and sat back to stare at his father. A sound reminiscent of the start of an old fight game went off in his head.  

 **_3_ ** 

 **_2_ ** 

 **_1_ ** 

 **_FIGHT!_ ** 

 _“_ The conference was on filing papers better.” Leon started. 

His dad let out a humorless laugh, “Oh and that took a month?” 

“They were very important papers.”  

Donovan raised an eyebrow, “Come now, you could do better than that.” 

Out of the corner of Leon’s eye he could see Cynthia lower her head into her hand with an air of disbelieving defeat. 

“There were other things too of course.” He responded anyway. 

Samuel tossed his head back dramatically to rest against the back of the chair, “Should we start the timer?” he mumbled to their mother. 

“And those things would be?” 

Leon floundered, his father had him in a corner. No choice but to pull out the final move. “Confidential.” he said with a false air of confidence and maybe a little sympathy for good measure. 

“Of course. How convenient.” 

“I signed a nondisclosure.”  

“As you always do on your so-called average office job.” 

 _Shit._ Leon blinked slowly in response and practiced a level of restraint in showing his true emotions that only came to him after years of working the job he does now. 

“Yes, my so-called average office job, with the government.”  

“Government? I thought you worked with some sort of travel agency?” 

 _Christ, was that my last excuse? A travel agency was the best I could come up with_ _?_ Leon felt sweat forming under his arms. “I was promoted...” 

“Promoted, were you? One has to wonder how someone gets promoted from a traveling agency to a government job, but no matter.” Donovan sat back in his seat with an air of someone who thinks they’d already won. 

 _“No matter” my ass_ _,_ _you clear_ _ly think it does,_ Leon thought to himself. 

“I guess it must be from all the extra traveling that you’ve been putting in. Speaking of traveling, where exactly  _were_ you on your last trip?” His father continued gesturing with his hand. 

Leon’s mind frantically searched his knowledge bank for a good excuse. “I was on an army base in Virginia... there was no cell reception there. That’s why it took some time to get back to you.”  

He glanced towards his mother, just in time to watch her mouth fell open in horror, “Leon! You didn’t join the military, did you?!” 

His father scoffed, “He didn’t join the military. You need to pass a drug test to get into the military.” 

Leon scowled darkly, sitting up straight again, “What’s that supposed to mean?” 

“You know exactly what I mean.”  

The two of them glared at each other, time passing as the living room clock counted down the seconds.  

“I’m not on drugs.” Leon said stiffly. It was ridiculous that, in his late twenties, he was still getting interrogated like he was a teenager. 

Before his father could respond, Cynthia abruptly stood from her place at the table.  

“I think I’m done, thanks for the meal Mom.” She said pointedly as she picked up her clearly barely touched meal and stormed off to the kitchen. 

“Oh yeah me too!” Sam said scrambling to follow after her.  

Even from the kitchen Leon could hear him “conspiratorially whispering” about how they should go to the Sonic down the road. 

“You know what, I think I’m done too.” Leon said, standing and about to collect his plate to leave. 

“No you’re not, sit back down.”  

Leon froze and slowly turned to glare at his father. 

“Donovan that’s quite enough.” Eleanor firmly spoke, standing as well, “I will not have you chasing all our kids off on one of the rare times we have them all home!”  

Donovan had a disbelieving look on his face as he stared at his wife, “If you’d rather sit by and let our son waste away that’s your decision but I’m not having it!” He yelled, the last to stand. 

“He’s not wasting away, he’s fine!” 

“You’re blind woman, look at him!” 

Leon's hands slammed onto the table, “Enough!” he yelled, accidentally letting out his more authoritative voice that he usually reserved for missions. 

Both of his parents stared in silent surprise at him, out of the corner of his eye he could see Cynthia and Samuel peak their heads out from the kitchen doorway. 

“I’m pretty tired. I’m going to my room. Thanks for dinner mom.” Leon said with a tone of finality. He swiveled on his heel and made his way upstairs without waiting for a response. 


	3. Cat's Out Of The Bag

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This one took a little longer because it's almost twice the length of the other two, hopefully you guys like it! There have been some really great comments from you guys and they really are the best, you guys rock! Again let us know if you spy any errors and happy reading!

Leon could almost swear that visible dust rose into the air when he tossed himself onto his bed. It was a blaring reminder of how long it had been since he was last home. It left him longing for the time when he had an optimistic path laid ahead of him; a time when a very different Leon staring up at this same ceiling.  

Back then he truly believed he had his future figured out. Now he could barely remember that Leon, the one that had such a hopelessly bright and naive outlook on the world, the system, and an uncontainable excitement for the life ahead of him as a cop. It went to show, planning only got you so far. His certainly fell to shreds fast. 

Now, only regret filled the tired agent. Regret for his stolen future, regret for having to lie to his family, regret for fighting his father as a result of those lies, and regret for jumping on the bed like an idiot only to feel the oh-so-fantastic sensation of his stitches tearing for the millionth time. 

“Right...I’m injured.” He grumbled to himself as he rolled onto his side, applying pressure to the afflicted area more in annoyance than from pain.  

It seemed like there wasn’t enough motivation in the world to counter Leon’s exhaustion, but the distinct feeling of blood oozing out of the wound was calling for his attention. He found himself counting down on his watch as an excuse to stay curled up in a ball and not give a damn for another five minutes.  _Just five more..._ Leon sighed. He was doing it again. 

He was being dumb. 

He knew that it was best that he gave the wound a second look before he ended up ruining another shirt. ‘ _Suck it up Leon_.’ he thought as he gathered up the last of his initiative and landed on the obvious conclusion that it would be best to get it over with quickly. It was with that thought that he sprang into action, the tired agent used what remained of his energy to sit up in one fluid motion and pull the shirt over his head. Rather dismissively he flung it in what he figured was the general vicinity of his bag and mentally made a note to collect it later.     

It was with great reluctance that Leon left his inviting bed in favor of digging through his bag across the room for what diminished first aid supplies he had left at his disposal. For a split second he worried he had used the last of his bandages, but relief soon washed over him when he spied one remaining roll sitting at the very bottom behind one of his stockpiled guns.  

It was his usual poor luck that saw Leon in the middle of peeling off the old bandage when he was interrupted by a knock on his door. A million excuses to dismiss whoever was on the other side danced across his tongue, but he didn’t have a chance to formulate a response before Cynthia was barging into the room.  

Cursing under his breath, Leon looked around for something to cover up with but the closest thing was the small quilt his mom knitted him one year when she was in the prime of her crafts phase, it sat thrown over the chair tauntingly across the room. “You know, usually, you’re supposed to wait for permission to enter after knocking. Kind of defeats the purpose otherwise.” Leon criticized, his silent feet edging forward. 

“I’ve literally never waited for permission to enter anywhere.” Cynthia replied flippantly, her attention on closing the door behind her securely as if she was ensuring no one had followed her.  

Leon resisted the urge to make a dirty joke at his sister’s expense. The temptation hung in the air but he let it pass in favor of halving the distance from the dresser to the chair while her back was turned instead.  

“You could lock it if you really didn't want anyone to come in, I heard it’s a great invention.” she continued unaware. 

“It’s honestly a miracle you haven’t walked in on something more scarring, especially with a brother like Sam.” Leon reached out for the small blanket, he was so close, just an arm's length away from at the very least tossing the quilt around his shoulders. Sure, it would look weird but he was sure his sister had seen weirder things after growing up with him and Samuel. 

“Yeah well-” Cynthia turned and raised her eyes, spying the unmistakable lesion across her brother’s abdomen. Cynthia’s eyes widened as she took in all his scars and the glaring injuries. “Holy shit, what the fuck Leon!” Leon’s outstretched arm that was  _just_  gripping the edge of the blanket, dropped in defeat. He was caught red-handed. 

He slumped at the look on his sisters face, Leon had really hoped to avoid this kind of confrontation with any part of his family, “Yeah, figured that I was going to be busted the minute you opened the door. Lucky for me, it’s my favorite person in the house!” Leon said, feigning a grin as he sat down on his bed. His expression was not very convincing as his smile didn't quite reach his eyes. He knew his perceptive sister wouldn’t be fooled in the slightest, yet he was too tired to act any more earnest. 

“Nice try, but flattery is not going to distract me from the fact that you look like you just got back from a knife fight!” Cynthia said, the picture of alarm as she crossed the room quickly and crouched down to inspect Leon’s injured side. Her hand hesitated as if she wanted to touch the wound, as if she couldn’t believe it was real. “What happened? Leon, don’t tell me dad was onto something about-” 

“Dad doesn’t know shit about what he’s talking about.” Leon growled defensively pushing her hands away far more roughly than he had intended. She lost her balance and fell with a short fall to the floor.  

Leon’s eyes widened, the words had exited his mouth with barely any thought, his actions of aggression seemed to be automated from somewhere deep inside him. There was a suffocating weight of frustration and resentment sitting in his chest, churning like a pacing lion in a cage, waiting to be heard. It was the beginning and the end of the ugly side of him that had been growing for some time in his years away from home and sometimes it felt like it only got bigger each year.  

Leon found himself, not for the first time, wishing it would shut up and never make itself known again, especially as he watched his baby sister recoil from him looking alarmed. This was not a night to feel proud of. He had never talked like that to his little sister before nor had he ever desired to. It hurt, seeing her looking so upset because of something he had done. Leon had always been her defender, her shield, but now for the first time ever he was the hammer that struck her down.  

He wilted, “Sorry, I’m so sorry... I just...” Leon’s head bowed as he seemed to collapse in on himself, face sinking into the palms of his hands in shame, “it’s really complicated C.” He peered back up at her to take her expression in and couldn’t help but to run a hand down his face at what he saw.  

Cynthia was looking at him like she’d finally realized that he wasn’t the same person who left for Raccoon City.  _Like he was a stranger._  

Cynthia was easily the most understanding person in the family, if she reacted this way to-Leon's train of thought cut off as another unpleasant one replaced it. His head slowly raised to meet her searching eyes. “Please don’t tell anyone. Especially not mom or dad, god if they knew....” Leon cringed and rubbed his face ashamed; it was not a pretty scene unfolding in his mind. 

Cynthia glanced off to the side, seemingly processing things before her eyes flickered back to his injury. Her brows furrowed as she chewed her bottom lip. Concern entered her eyes as she dismissed Leon’s earlier outburst and accepted his apology without speaking a word. So clearly was it written across her face as such things always had been. Cynthia lived a life where she was afforded the ability to wear her heart on her sleeve, in ways Leon was not able to anymore.  

“Ok...” She said as moved into a more comfortable position on the floor and fidgeted with the cuff of her jeans, “Ok, but...Leon listen, this doesn’t look like a small injury. I should take you to the hospital.”  

“No, no hospital.” Leon said moving back from Cynthia in mild alarm. There were questions he wouldn’t be able to answer at a normal small-town hospital, especially not with his family hanging at his side just as curious to know every detail.  

“Leon, it looks infected.”  

“It’s not an option.” 

“Why n-?” 

“It just isn’t.” Leon spoke with an air of absoluteness, one that left no room for further argument. 

Cynthia leaned back as if trying to see some bigger picture she was missing in her brother. She gnawed at her lower lip again in clear frustration and sighed in aggravation. “You’re being stupid.” she said under her breath.  

 _‘This is exhausting.”_ Leon thought, tired of arguing. He plopped back on his bed, wearily noting his eyes felt as if they were weighted as he closed them and pressed his hands into his pounding forehead. His head ached and the need to sleep seemed to be screaming demands into every corner of his stiff body. But Leon knew he couldn’t leave things like this, he couldn’t sleep with such a heavy conscience, not now, as he absorbed the way his sister sat silently with a heavy sense of discomfort like a statue on the floor. She would always come first.  

He patted the open space next to him on the bed in silent invitation. Cynthia hesitated for longer than he expected but eventually took the invitation for what it was and flopped down next to him. The two stared upwards at the old glow-in-the-dark stars stuck to the ceiling, wondering what to say to one another next to fix everything (or as close to fixed things could get these days in the Kennedy family). 

A distraction was needed, reassurance to his sister that at the very least he was doing much better than he looked. It was stupid, but his brain could only loop back to one idea above all else so he let it slide out of his mouth deciding that he couldn’t do anymore damage tonight.  

“Will you drive me to the corner store?” he asked, still staring at the faintly glowing ceiling. In his peripheral vision he could see his sister turn her head his way, eyes searching. 

“Don’t you have more pressing matters than getting a bag of chips or whatever?” 

Leon rolled his eyes, “I want to go so I can buy a first aid spray C, it’s not a snack run...although...”  _A bag of chips didn’t sound like too bad of an idea either._  

“Oh, for the love of–what the heck is a first aid spray going to do?” Cynthia asked incredulously, sitting back up, eyes narrowed, “Leon, look at your side!” 

Leon finally moved his eyes away from the faded stars to stare at his sister with a raised eyebrow, “I don’t need to. I can feel it just fine and you’d be amazed by the wonders of first aid sprays.” 

“This is not a moment to joke.” 

“It’s always a moment to joke.” Leon shot back without pause. Humor was probably the only reason he hadn’t completely lost his mind yet. When his sister looked no closer to budging Leon softened his expression, “Please? It'll help, I promise.” 

Cynthia threw her arms up in the air in over-exaggerated frustration, “Fine! You psycho. We’ll go to the corner store.” 

“Awesome.” Leon said as he sat up, he paused when it occurred to him how sneaky his sister could be and how easily she had agreed. There was nothing subtle about the suspicion on his face as he directed his attention back to her, “If you try to drive me to the hospital instead, I will jump out of the car.” Leon said before he got up to slap on the new bandage that was left forgotten on the dresser. 

“Even if I drive really fast?” 

“ _Especially_  if you drive really fast.” 

Cynthia squinted at Leon, her hand coming up to massage the bridge of her nose, “You need therapy.” She commented as she also stood to follow Leon out the room. 

Leon let out a short laugh and tugged on his discarded shirt from earlier, “Oh, you have no idea.”  

It seemed that the rest of the house had retreated to their respective bedrooms after the disastrous dinner, leaving the rooms darkened and empty. The uncomfortable energy of the earlier fight seemed to still resonate there like a ghost haunting the area. The two siblings carefully snuck down the stairs and to the front door, quietly opening it to avoid questions from the rest of the family (though Sam at least was more likely to beg like a child for them to let him tag along for a beer run than ask questions).  

Leon took a deep breath of fresh country air as he stepped outside and headed to Cynthia’s car. It was a very nice change from the sewer stink and the rotting corpses of diseased creatures that he had been surviving in for the past several weeks.  

His sister slid into the driver’s seat, starting the car as he claimed shotgun. “Yo, buckle your seatbelt, I don’t need you getting more injured if a deer pops out of nowhere.”  

Leon rolled his eyes and complied. “Bossy.” He muttered. “You just don’t want me jumping out, that’s what I think.”  

“You would be correct.” Cynthia said, smirking. “Oh hey, see what time the corner store closes and if it’s even open.” She said as she pulled out from the long driveway. 

Leon typed it in his phone, “We’re good.” She nodded and turned out to the main road which was barren and devoid of any other signs of life aside from a herd of cows having a late-night snack. Their eyes ominously glowed as the car headlights illuminated their figures passing by them. They drove along together, back down the narrow two-lane street. “So.” Cynthia glanced at him. She seemed to have some reservations as she carefully said, “Are you going to tell me, or what?”  

Leon stared out the window for several moments, “I can’t.” He said quietly. 

“Okay. But I just want to know...” She paused and took her eyes off the road for a moment to look into his with her piercing baby blues, “Are you in trouble?”  

Leon laughed a little, shifting where he sat, “Not exactly.”  

Silence and then, “You’re not dealing drugs, are you?” She asked in a small voice.  

“Would you believe me if I said I wasn’t?” Leon asked. 

There was a pause as Cynthia mulled it over for a moment, staring at the road as she drove along. “If it was true, yes, I would.” 

Leon looked at her seriously, “I’m not a dealer.”  

She glanced at him again long enough to see the conviction shining through his eyes in the darkness. “I believe you.” She sighed. “I just wish you’d be more honest sometimes. You can, with me, you know.” Cynthia looked back at the road, her mind spinning with possible explanations. What could Leon be doing to end up injured? Something that he couldn’t talk about? Was he doing something illegal? It didn’t seem like something that her brother would do. He was a good person, she knew that. 

“It’s not that I don’t trust you or think I can’t talk to you about things, it’s just...not up to me.” Leon said glancing back out the window. 

Cynthia’s hands tightened on the steering wheel, “Who is it up to then?” 

Leon just shook his head and shot his baby sister a sad look, “C, I’ve already said too much.” 

Cynthia sighed and settled her full attention back to the road, “Ok...just, if you ever need anything. If you find yourself in trouble, you know you can–” 

“I know.” Leon said sinking back into his seat, “Thanks C.” 

Cynthia nodded her head in response. When the silence began to stretch for too long, Cynthia shifted in her seat and eyed Leon, head swiveling from the road to her brother in intervals. 

Leon shifted to look at her fully, eyebrow raised, “What?” he said, incredibly bemused. 

Leon wasn’t the only one in the Kennedy family that liked falling back on humor to relieve tension. This fact only becoming clearer as a slow unsteady smile crossed Cynthia’s face, “So...am I really your favorite person in the family?”  

“Oh my god.” Leon laughed, “Yes, obviously, you’re everyone’s favorite.” 

Cynthia did a little shoulder shimmy, wiggling in her seat in victory, “But of course!” she said dramatically, a more genuine and playful smile replacing the shaky one. 

Leon rolled his eyes, “Oh, just put Freddie Mercury back on already.” he said tonelessly, his face a mask of blank neutrality. There was a small upwards twitch at the corner of his mouth that threatened to blow his cover and give away the obvious fact that he wasn’t actually annoyed in the slightest. 

“You know, I would, can’t really say no to Freddie...but we’re already here.” Cynthia replied as she pulled into the small parking lot and put the car in park. 

“Ah, so we are.” Leon said sitting back in his seat to take in the somewhat run-down scene before him. He remembered the old convenience store looking significantly better before but the possibility that that was just nostalgia in the works was high. 

The little corner store was the only illuminated spot on the dark street aside from a small, grungy bar across the street that had been standing there for several decades and never seemed to get any updates. Clearly the owner didn’t want to fix what wasn’t broken, as most of the cars and bikes were parked at the bar, seemingly like local moths gathered around a light fixture. A mere handful of vehicles sat idly amongst them at the lonely old store that featured a “help wanted” sign in the yellowed window. Leon stepped out of the car taking a look at the convenience store, which was heavily advertising staged looking hotdogs and donuts with coffee.    
   
“Mm, cold coffee beans with tap water sounds good right about now.” Cynthia joked upon noticing her brother examining the sign. 

“Yeah, it probably looks more appetizing in the photo.” he sighed. He could have done with a good strong cup of coffee. He wondered if it might revive him. 

Cynthia led the way inside, ignoring some loud hoots and hollers from drunken customers across the street, with what sounded like slurred karaoke carrying out its doors. The sliding doors creaked open with an ungodly squeal and bright yellow fluorescent lights stabbed at any unfortunate new customers eyes. Leon squinted as he grabbed a small basket to carry his supplies.  _Yeah_ _, his memory was definitely way off. Nostalgia was wild._  

Cynthia followed her brother as he passed the empty hotdog cart that advertised on a sign above that they were always available. By the time they reached the pharmacy section, she looked as if she was holding back another comment about going to the hospital.  

Leon scanned the products, quickly finding his target. He bent down and plucked up a small bottle, holding it up between his thumb and forefinger. “This should do the trick.” He said triumphantly, standing up. 

Cynthia blinked and stared at him like he had lost his mind. There was a long pregnant pause as they both became painfully aware of the twangy small-town country music playing on the overhead radio. “Leon... That’s...Neosporin.”  

Leon only smiled, “Yep.” he said as he tossed the little bottle into his basket. Upon noticing Cynthia eyeing him in concern, Leon sighed, “Fine.” he said dramatically, “We’ll go all out, ok?” and with that he plucked a couple disinfectant sprays and a roll of bandages to add to his measly supplies.  

“Better?” he said with a look back at his sister. 

Cynthia furrowed her brow, chin raising as she stared at him, and her mouth pressed into an obvious grimace, “No?” she said like she couldn’t believe her dumbass brother. 

“Eh well, agree to disagree then.” Leon eyed the rest of the aisle as his sister continued to stare, “Is mom still on that health kick?” 

“Are you perhaps asking me if we currently have any junk food at the house?” Cynthia said with a silly flourish of her hand, finishing with crossing her arms. 

“Yeah.” 

“Then no, we don’t. Although, I do have a sneaking suspicion Dad might have a secret stash hidden somewhere but that’s off limits for obvious reasons.” 

Leon nodded his head unsurprised as he made his way towards the chip aisle. 

“Are you for real right now?” Cynthia asked as she followed him. 

Leon pretended he didn’t hear as he picked up two different bags and furrowed his eyebrows in indecision. “Which one should I get?” 

“Oh my god.” Cynthia raised her arms and let her head fall back as if asking some divine being to send answers to the mysteries of her weirdo brother, “Why not just get both, you’re probably going to bleed to death by the end of the night anyway with your pathetic Neosporin.” 

“Dramatic much?” Leon tossed the chips into his bag, “But you know what, I think I will. Life is short and all that.” 

Cynthia rolled her eyes, “Sure, yeah, why not.” She followed him while shaking her head, “You better share.” 

They wandered to the barren register line which consisted of a sour-looking worker, slouching and picking at her cuticles as she chewed bubblegum loudly. The sight of Leon approaching seemed to make her face light up like a Christmas tree, “No way!” The shop worker said in disbelief, her dumpy posture straightening. “Leon Kennedy, as I live and breathe. It’s been forever!” 

Leon squinted, trying to place the familiar face before his eyes widened in recognition.  _Oh god no!_  Leon thought as he forced a polite smile, “Oh... If it isn’t...you... long time no see...” Leon could scarcely remember her name, “Lilly?” He gambled. 

She nodded enthusiastically brushing back greasy looking hair appearing suddenly insecure, as if she realized that she wasn’t looking her best. “Yeah, you’re telling me! Wow...you look good by the way.” Lilly batted her eyes. It did her no favors as it only emphasized her smeared blue eyeshadow that was applied inexpertly.  

“Thanks...you too.” Leon said his voice trailing off in disbelief.  

Cynthia raised an eyebrow, her eyes darting back and forth between the two. She cleared her throat loudly and nodded to their things when Lilly continued to stare at Leon like he was one of the snacks they grabbed to buy.  

“Oh right!” Lilly said, her eyes lingering on Cynthia, an awkward laugh following her words.  

Leon breathed a sigh of relief when she directed her attention to checking out their items. The relief was unfortunately short lived though as he watched his little sister fail to stifle a laugh, and disguise it as a cough last minute when the checkout girl glanced at her questioningly. The youngest Kennedy shook her head and smiled politely as if nothing was amiss. 

Leon rolled his eyes. Typical sibling, mocking his discomfort. 

“That will be thirty-five dollars.” Lilly said as she bagged the items. 

Leon grumbled as he pulled his wallet out, “Nothing is cheap anymore.” he said under his breath. Cynthia nodded sagely in response at his side, he almost snorted at that but managed to stop himself just in time.  

“So, Leon-” Lilly began as she took Leon’s card, “How long are you in town? Maybe you and I can go out while you’re here?” The statement was followed with a failed attempt at a wink and Leon tried not to let any negative reaction show. 

“I can’t I... have a girlfriend.”  

“Oh. Right of course.” Lilly responded quickly, cheeks growing pink and her face falling, as she scanned his card and handed the two back their things. She seemed in a hurry for them to leave now. “Well, um, maybe I’ll see you guys around.”  

“Yeah maybe.” Cynthia finished as she grabbed Leon’s arm and began to drag him towards the door with a hasty goodbye called over her shoulder. 

As soon as the doors were closed behind them Cynthia whirled around to face Leon again, skipping backwards towards their car. “Who was that?” she said with an amused smile. 

Leon grimaced, “You don’t remember her?” 

“No?” 

“Remember the Mingel’s family?” Leon asked as he waited for Cynthia to unlock the car. 

“Oh yeah!” Cynthia responded, bouncing on her heels as she swung her keys out of her pocket, “Mom and Dad were all buddy-buddy with them for a while, right?” 

“Yeah they met them at church.”  

“Right, right, it’s coming back to me slowly here.” she said as the two climbed into the car. 

Leon sunk in his seat miserably, “Yeah, Lilly was the youngest...she stalked me all throughout high school.”  

“Oh!” Cynthia slammed a hand into the steering wheel dramatically, “Didn't she confess to you at the family barbecue or something.” 

Leon groaned, impossibly sinking further till he could hardly be considered sitting, “Yes... in front of everyone.” 

“Oh man, now I remember. That was rough to watch.” 

“Imagine being the one enduring it.” Leon sighed, shaking his head. “Of all the people...next we’ll find my elementary teacher in the bar.” 

Cynthia’s eyes lit up as she laughed, “Miss Torrez? Oh my god you actually just might! Wanna go see?” she joked as she put the car in reverse. 

“Don’t you dare.” Leon glared at his baby sister in warning, only earning more laughter out of her in response. 

Cynthia waited for her chuckles to die down a bit before reaching over to turn the CD player on with a smile. No words were spoken, just a content silence to the tune of Queen rocking out in the background as they made the short drive back home. 

 

* * *

 

 The house was darkened, the car engine purring quietly as it pulled up in front of its silhouette. Leon stepped out, careful in closing the door as quietly as possible behind him and Cynthia followed suit. As they walked toward the house together Cynthia halted just a handful of feet from the door. 

“Do you really think that that little bottle of disinfectant spray is going to do the trick?”  

Leon halted on the porch steps and took a moment to really look at his sister, “Trust me, I’ll be good as new tomorrow.” He hated that he could only offer her what felt like the hundredth reassuring smile that night and hope it was enough to not keep her up tonight. 

Still it seemed that this was going to weigh on his sister regardless, her face going through a whole array of emotions: worry, disbelief and doubt. Eventually reluctant acceptance prevailed as it paved its way across her face. Cynthia rocked back on her heels and muttered something about how Leon ‘better not be dead tomorrow’ as she moved past him and opened the door. 

The siblings both kicked their shoes off in the foyer. Leon lingered awkwardly, finding it difficult to leave after worrying her. He wasn’t sure how to explain things that he couldn’t. He glanced at Cynthia, “Goodnight C, and uh...thanks for everything.”  

Cynthia merely nodded her head in response, as she followed him up the stairs, “Goodnight bro, see you in the morning.” 

Leon smiled, his foot just meeting the upstairs hallway when he heard his sister make a small little “Oh!” sound as if a realization just hit her.  

“Leon, you told that girl you had a girlfriend, right? Is that true?”  

Leon opened his mouth to respond but both siblings paused upon hearing what sounded like the tail end of an argument coming from their parent’s room. Their voices rising and falling in a way that suggested that being heard by anyone else in the house was the last thing on their agenda. Leon hesitated to hear what sounded like his father saying, “He has all the signs of being a heroin user.”  

Cynthia cringed, “Never mind, it can wait till later.” she whispered as she sympathetically patted his shoulder, passing him to make her way to her own room. 

Leon sighed in exasperation, feeling annoyed as he trudged down the hallway following his sister’s lead in calling it a night, it was probably best he let it go and didn’t stick around to eavesdrop on anymore of the conversation. The message was received with just that one sentence anyway; he desperately needed a better excuse than what he had offered his family thus far. He knew his father was only concerned for his best interest, but sometimes, it did more harm than good. 

Leon’s stomach dropped when he saw the door to his room slightly ajar, he specifically recalled closing it, and he usually didn’t recall wrong. It was things like this that, in his line of business, he remembered. Leon moved forward, his feet not making a sound, as he carefully posted himself at the doorway to listen for anything suspicious. His eyes narrowed as he heard what sounded like rustling. It sounded like something was being dragged across the wood floor.  

The agent’s nostrils flared, as hyper reflexes returned to him, battle instincts kicking into drive. He was aware that he was unarmed, but that didn’t make him entirely defenseless. He shifted his body, ready to fight whatever it was that awaited him. Leon pushed the door with his toe, letting it swing open. He paused, then moved forward at once and flipped the light on, capturing the intruder in his act. 

Samuel looked like a deer-in-head-lights with his hand stuck inside of Leon’s bag. 

Neither party moved as both registered the other. 

“Hey.” Leon said tersely. 

“Hey.” Replied Samuel. 

There was another long pause and silence that was conducted by the old grandfather clock in the hall loudly ticking its way into Leon’s room. It seemed like an unspoken staring contest had begun between the two as Sam clumsily shifted back on his haunches without breaking eye-contact. 

“Whatcha doin’?” Leon asked. 

“Nothin’...” Sam mumbled. 

“Why do you have your hand inside of my bag?”  

Sam looked down at the bag, his mouth pressed in a thin line. Slowly he returned his empty, wide-eyed gaze to Leon, with a sheepish smile spreading across his face, “I was... looking for you?” Samuel said, his voice up-ticking like he himself couldn’t believe that’s the excuse he was falling back on. Sam’s eyebrows furrowed as his hand seemingly closed on something metal and hard and he pulled out a SMG gun staring at it drunkenly.  

 _Well, shit_  Leon thought as he watched as his wasted brother seemed to mull over this new find with what little brain-cells remained. The blonde thought not much could surprise him anymore, but the sight of his stupid brother shrugging and dramatically aiming the (luckily) unloaded gun with bad form was not something he ever expected to see. 

“Ohhh... This is your drug lord gun, isn’t it?” Sam said with interest. He squinted an eye, aiming at an invisible target as he made a soft bang noise pretending to fire it. 

Leon slowly blinked and then crossed the room toward him, prying the semi-automatic gun from his older brother’s hands. “You’re drunk Sam.” He tossed it carelessly back into his backpack and moved to throw the pack back into the closet but it was grasped by his brother. “So... you got any...party supplies?” Samuel asked looking hopeful as he gripped onto the bag’s handle.   
   
Leon rubbed his face with his hand exasperatedly, if he had to hear one more time about him being a dealer, he thought he was going to snap. He wondered why he bothered to visit home if this was all that was going to await him. “For the last time, I’m not a drug addict. I told mom; those were medicinal herbs.” He said feeling frustrated and exhausted. He pried the backpack out of Sam’s hands and went to put it back in the closet lazily. “Next time, stay out of my bag before you end up accidentally shooting yourself.” Leon scolded as he shut the closet door with a resounding click. 

“Stingy.” Samuel muttered. 

“Go to bed Sam.” Leon said dully. He would be more worried if he thought that Sam would actually remember anything that he had seen at this point. 

“Bed... yeah, that sounds pretty nice. Is Cynthia home?” Sam asked dreamily. 

“Yup, she’s waiting to tuck you in and read you a bed time story, so you better hurry up.” Leon replied, humoring him as he helped pull his mess of a brother to his feet. Honestly, Leon thought, dad should be more concerned about Sam than him. He was not sure how Samuel got away with everything that he did. 

“Nice.” Sam murmured with a stupid grin.  

Leon rolled his eyes as he helped him to his door where he discarded him and returned to his room. There was no point in actually dragging Sam into his room, he’d just leave it again with the way he was currently.  

After ensuring that the door to his room was in fact locked this time to bar further intruders, he went to work on finally treating his wound properly; if all went well, it would be gone by the morning.  

It was just as he finished sticking on what he hoped to be the last needed bandage and was debating on going to bed, when he heard a familiar sound going off across the room. Leon closed his eyes in dread.  

He’d rather pretend he didn’t hear the cursed thing and just go to sleep but he knew doing so might yield worse complications later. He scanned the floor for the small com device. No doubt it must have fallen out of the bag sometime between Sam pulling it out of its’ hiding place and Leon putting it back. 

As predicted, the little ear piece sat innocently on the floor in the middle of his room, he slid it on as he dug the main handheld part of the device out of the bag. 

Hunnigan’s grim face greeted him as he confirmed the connection, “You know, I meant it this time when I said I’m on vacation.” Leon said, a scowl already marring his face. 

“If it were up to me, I’d let you keep it but something rather urgent has come up.” Hunnigan said. If Leon wasn’t so familiar with her; he probably would have missed the small look of sympathy she was giving him. 

“It’s always something urgent.” Leon rubbed his face in frustration. “I’m off duty and I’m with my family, it’s not an option.” 

“Leon you know as well as I do that there’s no such thing as truly being ‘off duty’ in this line of work.” 

Leon scoffed, glancing at his door like he suspected someone from his family to barge in at any moment, “Hunnigan, if I pack my bags and leave now, my family will never forgive me. I also have no viable explanation for that considering I can’t tell them the truth and my cover job isn’t supposed to be  _that_  significant. I’ve been promising for months that I would be here.” 

“Just hear me out Leon.” 

Leon closed his eyes praying for patience as he shifted into a more comfortable sitting position on the floor, “What is it then?” 

“The B.S.A.A. informed us that they hit a base, a new small branch off of Neo Umbrella in Nevada.” 

“That’s unusual, they don’t typically keep the D.S.O in on their movements.” 

“Yeah well, something went wrong obviously. One of the head scientists got away.” Hunnigan glanced off to the side, probably reading some file on another computer out of Leon’s sight, “It doesn’t sound good Leon, from what they were able to gather...The scientist was working on creating a new strand of the virus with the use of an aquatic speci-” 

The loud knocking, near slamming really, on his door caused Leon to jump. He dropped the handheld, flying up into a crouch as he pulled a gun from his bag and aimed. 

“Who are you talking to at this hour?” He heard a familiar booming voice filter through from the other side. The shadow of a pair of feet could be seen under the crack of the door from the illuminating light in the hallway. 

Leon scowled as he lowered his gun.  _Of course_ , it was just his dad snooping into his business.  

“Dad, are you for real right now?” He heard his sister far more muffled join in, probably from the doorway of her own room. 

Donovan evidently decided to ignore his daughter as he tried the door to Leon’s room, jiggling the handle. “Why is this locked?” He continued, like his son was being unreasonable to want privacy. 

Leon hastily kicked everything under his bed and shoved his gun under the mattress. “I was just talking with a friend on the phone.” He said as he made his way to his door and pulled it open. 

His father stepped back and crossed his arms. It was in the tilt of his head and the way he narrowed his eyes that clearly stated disbelief was written all over his face. It made Leon feel slightly more violent than usual as he clenched and unclenched his fists. “A friend at three am?” He said suspiciously. It didn’t take much guessing to figure his father was probably imagining far more shady people than a ‘friend’. 

Leon made a show of looking at the hall clock, “Oh, is it that time already? Must have lost track.” He said doing his best to look innocent. 

“Donovan, leave him be. We aren’t starting this again.” He heard his mom near growl from the doorway of the master bedroom. 

“Yeah, dad if you’re going to interrogate him, can it wait till tomorrow at least? Pretty sure everyone here can use the sleep.” Cynthia said making her way down the hall to be closer. 

Donovan through it all continued to glare at Leon silently, Leon matching his stare unwaveringly. The hall felt filled with enough tension to be physically used as a weapon. 

“Donovan.” Eleanor said quietly in warning. 

Everyone seemed to take a breath of relief as the old man grunted and began to make his way back to his wife, “Go to bed.” he said commandingly as he passed the threshold of his own room, the door closing behind him with finality. 

Leon resisted the elementary response of  _make me_ that automatically flashed across his mind as he met eyes with his sister. “Just talking with a friend.” he said to her as if saying it multiple times will make it more believable. In a way it was very partially true.  

Cynthia slowly nodded her head, “Right...” she said quietly though despite her response it was clear she didn’t particularly buy it. 

“Right.” Leon repeated. 

Cynthia cleared her throat breaking the forming silence as she backed up a step towards her room. “Well, I’m actually going to bed this time, see you tomorrow.”  

Leon nodded, “Right, goodnight.” he called as he watched her take the few steps it took to get back to her room. 

“Night.” she said, door closing quietly behind her. 

Leon sighed heavily before shutting his own door, he leaned his forehead against the scratched painting of the old wood. Head lifting to tap his forehead against the surface lightly in lieu of the temptation to bang his head repeatedly instead.  

 _This day has sucked._ He thought as he started to pull out his stuff scattered about under his bed.  _It probably couldn’t get much worse_ , it was almost over after all. 

Leon regretted that thought almost immediately as he picked up his com, it was as if he went and jinxed himself as he found a broken and cracked device that near shattered in his hands. 

“I stomped on my com.” He said in disbelief, in all his years, going through battles, handling heavy artillery and being attacked by B.O.Ws, he couldn’t believe it was a trip back home that finally marked the first time he had ever broken a stupid com. “I’m never going to hear the end of it, I stomped on it like an idiot.”  

After fiddling with the device long enough to determine that it was completely inoperable. Leon chucked it back into his bag in frustration. “I’m done.” the agent said as he got up and flicked off the light on his side table. He collapsed in his bed and spared just enough time to sort through what little Hunnigan managed to tell him but it wasn’t much to go off of, he didn’t have the full picture. 

 _They’ll just send someone else to deal with it, it’s not my problem._ It was almost a comforting thought and it was the last to cross his mind before he rolled over and fell asleep.  


	4. Caught Between a Rock and Hard Place

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> In which Leon continues to not catch a break and is as #done as ever.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> We're back! So sorry for the wait, we went on a trip together and got back to a boatload of work and college finals...On the bright side we now have personal experience with Hawaii so we can draw from that for later in the fic. Hopefully this chapter is up to par and you guys like it!

The heavenly smell of bacon and eggs filled the bedroom as Leon opened a bleary eye. He yawned loudly and groaned from hunger. Breakfast...he fucking loved breakfast. As if on cue his stomach churned, rumbling its’ complaints to remind him that he ate very little at dinner the night before. 

Motivated by the promise of food, Leon sat up, swinging his legs over to the edge of the bed and stretched. He brought his wrist up to examine the time, swaying groggily. The little arms of the clock glared up at him with the knowledge that it was half past ten. Leon sighed thinking that he probably could have slept in longer. An additional hour would have been nice but his body didn’t seem to allow him stay asleep for very long anymore. 

Leon’s head tilted as he heard a rumbling sound of voices filtering up from the kitchen below. If Leon had to hazard a guess, the makings of yet another argument was brewing. He would have liked something better first thing in the morning... A simple cup of coffee would have been preferable. 

It seemed that family visits always sounded better in theory than they were in reality if the constant drama was any indication of how the rest of the trip was going to go.  _Or maybe my family is just dysfunctional._  Still, if there was one good thing to be gained from this morning, Leon thought, it was the fact that his wound had finally healed. He disposed the unneeded bandage goofily with an over-the-top basket toss and kissed the trusty bottle of Neosporin in thanks as he made his way to the bathroom to clean up.  

It was refreshing to have a nice shower. Leon felt a sense relief seeing the face looking back at him in the mirror as he brushed his teeth. He was looking less pale and color seemed to have returned to him, the dark circles around his eyes had faded thanks to the slightly more restful night than usual.  

He even shaved off the scruffy hair making its way across his jaw, something that he didn’t usually bother doing as much anymore, especially on long missions. There was no point aside from impressing a passing zombie (or on the off chance that he might meet a certain lady in red), but he knew that it was better to try to look more pulled together for his parent’s behalf.  

Reluctant to face what was sure to be a shit-show when he’d done nearly everything he could to stall for time, Leon took his time down the stairs and toward the sounds of his parents bickering.  

“I don’t want you doing that to him, he won’t want to come back here if you do.” Mrs. Kennedy was saying irritably. 

“Well, something needs to be done.” Mr. Kennedy argued. 

“Maybe you could be more concerned about  _my_  predicament!” 

“Well, I told you not to let Sam drink so much yesterday, didn’t I?”  

“You could have stepped in, he’s your son too you know! What am I supposed to tell the ladies now?” 

_How refreshing, they’re finally_ _complaining_ _about Sam and not me._  Leon thought lethargically. He stepped into the kitchen doorway, where his squabbling parents were. 

“Morning.” Leon announced.  

Donovan’s eyes rose from today’s newspaper to look at Leon from his place at the table, the eye glasses perched on his nose slightly sliding down the bridge as he eyed his son.  

Eleanor swiveled around to see him and her face seemed to split into a grin at the sight of him all cleaned up. “Oh! Good morning!” She beamed. Leon smiled back; her happiness was infectious.  

His father seemed to be observing him doubtfully while Leon was embraced with a warm hug from his mother. It seemed that Donovan, out of all of the family members, had been the most affronted by the fact that Leon vanished for months on end for work. It was ironic considering that he himself had often put his career in the police force above his wife and three children. 

Leon sighed, he wasn’t going to keep trying to prove himself to his father, if he didn’t want to believe him, then so be it. He took a seat at the table as his mother patted him reassuringly on the shoulder giving Donovan the side eye.  

“Don... Are you going to say anything?” His mother questioned raising an eyebrow. 

“You...look better today.” His father muttered.  

Leon shrugged, “It’s crazy what a good night’s rest can do.”  _Not that I would know_. He thought smirking. 

Donovan grunted in response. 

Leon’s attention shifted as he sniffed the air like a bloodhound on the hunt as the wafting smell of eggs, pancakes and bacon filled his senses, a glorious plate appearing in his line of sight as his mother crossed the room towards him. It looked wonderful. “Thanks mom, you didn’t have to bring it out to me, I could have gotten it.” Leon said, his mouth watering as he grabbed his silverware ready to dig in.  

Eleanor made a small sound of dismissal, “I’m just really happy you’re home” she said. 

Donovan returned to his paper with a shake of his head as Leon practically inhaled his breakfast; the first real decent meal he had gotten in months. 

It was at about the third sigh from Eleanor however, that made Leon pause to glance over at his mother. “So... what’s going on mom?” Leon asked suspiciously. Her dramatic sighs seemed almost deliberate; everyone in the Kennedy family knew to beware when she started this. 

Eleanor had a pensive look about her face as she twisted an abused cloth napkin back and forth in her hands. “Oh... well, I guess I forgot that this was the weekend that you were coming when I had volunteered to help with the church fundraiser, you know, at Beacon Light.”  

Beacon Light was the same church that the family had attended for years and years. Leon vaguely remembered the place from when he attended as a child. It always reeked of a fragrance of musky perfumes from the church ladies. Leon recalled watching dust mites floating in the streaming sunlight over the heads of church goers as he would sit uncomfortably on some of the hardest wooden benches he had ever encountered, listening to long droning sermons that he struggled to stay awake through on the early Sunday mornings. 

“Oh. A fundraiser?” Leon asked with mock curiously in his voice as he nibbled on a piece of bacon.  

“Yes, well, Sam actually had said that he would help out with the car wash but now he’s well...” 

“Sleeping in with a hangover?” Leon offered. 

Seeing his mother’s gloomy expression as she nodded made Leon feel a twinge of guilt for everything that she had to put up with and for just a single moment he forgot who he was dealing with. He could not be more disinterested in a church fundraiser, but he could recognize when his mother was in need. “Well, I could probably step in.”  

“Really? Oh no dear, you just got here I couldn’t possibly–” Eleanor began with sparkling eyes. 

“No, really. I can help out. It's no big deal.” Leon repeated, unsure why he was so resolute in volunteering his time when his mother (unconvincingly) was assuring him that he didn’t have to. However, the alternative was spending a day stuck with his father and he had a sinking feeling that he might try to make him take one of those over-the-counter drug tests. Leon honestly would have taken any excuse to avoid that.  

Donovan huffed like he wanted to make a complaint but his mouth snapped shut immediately at the look his wife sent him, he sunk back into his chair and immediately raised his paper like a shield. Leon had his doubts that he was actually reading a word of it. 

“Ah,” Leon began, an obvious problem occurring to him only seconds later, “Mom what exactly should I wear for this, you said it was a carwash?”  

Eleanor nodded, “It is.” she said, “But you can probably just wear a pair of shorts, or there might be an old pair of swim trunks somewhere in your room.” 

Leon winced, anything in his room now might be a little tight... 

“I’m sure I’ll figure it out.” He said with a forced smile that he was almost positive came across more as a wince.  

“You’re a lifesaver!” Eleanor said. She kissed the side of Leon’s head and practically skipped back to the kitchen.  

Leon had the distinct feeling he’d just been played by his own mother.  

“Feel like I’ve just been made a fool.” He mumbled into his eggs. 

“What else is new.” His father grumbled quietly back almost like there was no thought before it had slipped out. 

“Wow.” Leon said. 

Donovan slowly lowered his paper, there was what looked like a hint of regret in his eyes but both knew he’d never admit to it. 

“Thanks dad.” Leon said flatly as he gathered his plate up with the intention of finishing it within the safe confines of the kitchen with his mildly manipulative but loving mother. It didn’t take long before he was placing it in the sink and heading off to find spare swim trunks and change. 

However, before he was even able to climb the stairs, Cynthia stalked past with a glint of amusement in her eye. Leon paused to look at her and she flashed him an evil grin. “Thanks for taking one for the team.” she winked at him and Leon slumped against the banister looking at her in disbelief.  

He had clearly just been roped into doing a task no one else was willing to do. “You knew?” Leon said dully.  

Cynthia chuckled wickedly, “Well yeah duh, I think Sam got drunk on purpose last night so he could have the excuse not to hang out with a bunch of thirsty old women on a Saturday in swim trunks but hey, you’ll do great, I’m sure they’ll love you.” She winked and patted him on the back supportively as she dashed to the door with keys in hand, giggling the whole way. 

“Where are you going?” Leon called after her, wishing he could say he was surprised that he had been duped. 

“Oh, I’m just going to go visit some old friends of mine I haven’t seen in a while.” Cynthia replied as she shrugged on a jacket.  

Leon grumbled inaudibly as he watched his sister sprint out the door and make her escape.  

 

* * *

 

 As expected, the swim trunks were rather small but luckily Leon found a pair that worked. He sighed as he gave his room one more glance over to ensure everything was hidden from the prying eyes of his father. When nothing concerning caught his eye, he tugged on a t-shirt he had dug out of his old clothes noting how it seemed to have shrunk with the way it was clinging to his frame as he made his way out into the hall.  

The sounds of loud snoring came from Sam’s room as the agent passed by. Leon hesitated and pushed open the door to check on him to make sure he didn’t choke on his own spit or something. Sam was annoyingly fine. Stretched out on his stomach like a cat, the idiot’s hungover body was dangerously teetering half way off the mattress. An arm dangled over the side and a large puddle of drool had formed beneath his open mouth.  

Leon merely shook his head and closed the door feeling mildly betrayed by his siblings for sticking him with a church fundraiser. Maybe he should have just stayed with his father and took his chances, though he was certain that his day with have been just as royally screwed either way. He knew that he couldn’t change his mind now. 

Trotting down to meet his mother, he found her waiting for him at the bottom of the stairs in the foyer applying some bright orange lipstick that she had extracted from a large leather handbag. When she started to pull out her car keys, Leon groaned a little under his breath. His mother was a terrible driver, though she would never admit to it. Every time she acquired a traffic violation ticket, she would claim it was caused by another driver’s negligence and never her own.  

“Uhm mom, maybe you should let me drive.” Leon suggested lightly.  

Eleanor frowned. “Oh nonsense, you’re not a very good driver Leon.” she said bluntly as she puckered her lips at her mirror reflection, replaced the cap on the lipstick with a snap and tossed it back into her purse. 

That stung a little, Leon hated that he couldn’t even argue it. He had a history of wrecked vehicles. The DSO wasn’t going to let him forget that anytime soon. 

Honestly, if anyone in the Kennedy family was considered to be an actual decent driver, it’d probably be Cynthia, still Leon liked to think he was at least better than his mother. Getting in the car with her felt almost as risky as going on some of his missions, but he said nothing as he buckled up, feeling a bit foolish riding passenger in his mother’s midlife crisis vehicle of choice: a Volkswagen beetle.  

His mother backed out of the driveway, slightly running over a curb as she turned the wheel. She drove along en route to Beacon Light humming along to music playing on the radio rather like Cynthia would.  

As the fields flew by outside the window while they sped past, Leon began to think of all of the things he would rather be doing than a carwash. He figured he should just try to grin and bear it, after all, it was in his best interest to at least get along with some portion of his family while he was spending two weeks of vacation with them. Still, Leon had the distinct feeling that he would be needing a vacation from this vacation when all was said and done. There was no rest for the weary. 

“So, who thought of the carwash idea?” Leon asked conversationally, breaking the silence.  

Eleanor’s face darkened a bit, “Oh, it was Lorraine. I think she just wanted to get those skinny girls of hers in swimsuits, always trying to show them off like they’re something special.” She said bitterly. 

Leon gave her the side eye, “That sounds a little aggressive mom.” He resisted adding ‘not very Christian’. He also held his tongue in pointing out that she seemed to be trying to show off her own kids too.  

“Oh, she’s fine.” Eleanor added snappishly. “Just, she thinks she can come in and run the show all the time. She always has to be the center of attention and she’s always bragging. You’ll see what I mean.” 

Leon shook his head and sat back in his seat. He could swear that for as long as he could remember his mother was always having low-key drama with someone. He supposed it was just out of boredom that she had to create some sort of scenario, making a mountain out of a mole hill. It shouldn’t come as a surprise since she didn’t have any children left in her nest, still Leon wished that she had just gotten into a peaceful hobby, like knitting. He turned up the radio to drown out the silence as the car rolled along, eventually pulling into a busy parking lot.  

It was clear by the amount of traffic that had gathered in the area, it was one of the most popular spots in town. Leon was surprised to see that Beacon Light had gotten quite the upgrade since he had last been there in his teens. 

He had remembered a small, crumbling building with dingy stained glass and yellowing paint. If Leon didn’t know any better, he would have thought that they had bulldozed the entire place to start over, yet the same steeple could be seen (repainted) in the center where a whole other addition had been put on. It seemed they had been profitable in their expansion as there were stands set up with other ladies in garish hats, bright balloons, and a group of teenagers busy at work kneeling on the ground over large poster boards with markers, writing advertising signs for the car wash.  

“Wow, Beacon Light is not what it used to be.” Leon commented. His mother glanced at him as she stopped a little too sharply into the parking spot, the car screeching like a dying animal and causing them both to jolt forward in their seats, saved from going through the windshield by their seatbelt.  

“Oh, it’s been like this for some time. You should come more often.” Eleanor said with such a stiffness that Leon suddenly regretted saying anything, it was clear it was a bit of a sore spot to mention how much things had changed. It really emphasized how much time they had been apart and how much Leon had neglected family visits.  

He rubbed his head uncomfortably, unsure how to respond but it seemed Eleanor must have realized that she had been harsher than intended because in the next moment she smiled earnestly and patted him on the hand.  

“Well, you’re here now. Thank you for coming to help me with the fundraiser so last minute since your brother... well...” She trailed off.  

Leon smiled back, “Sure mom.” He squeezed her hand back lightly with his free hand in return and nodded his head, indicating where the action was. “Shall we?”  

Eleanor smiled, “We shall!” she said much too enthusiastically as she made her way out of the vehicle. 

In contrast, Leon took his time getting out, trailing behind his mother slowly as he took in the smell of soap and wet grass from the hoses running.  

“Hi Lorraine!” Eleanor called cheerfully with none of the salt in her tone from the earlier car ride. 

A reasonably attractive older woman in a floral Sunday dress was walking toward them with some noticeably botched Botox in her stiff expression. “Eleanor! Thank you for coming!” She crooned giving Leon’s mother a hug which was returned.  

Leon watched skeptically with a furrowed brow as the two women united, appearing to be best friends. He shook his head wordlessly.     

“Is Samuel here for the wash?” Lorraine asked with a grin. 

“Oh, unfortunately he just wasn’t feeling very well this morning but I brought my other son, Leon.” Eleanor said proudly indicating him. 

Lorraine seemed to double take as she evaluated him. “Well, he’s just as handsome as Sam!” she said appreciatively as her eyes traveled up and down. 

Leon forced his face to remain neutral despite feeling mildly disturbed, it definitely wasn’t the first time someone creepily checked him out and it was unlikely to be the last. 

Eleanor, oblivious to her so-called friend’s behavior tilted her nose up and replied with a snide, “Of course he is!” as if she was offended Lorraine would even suggest any of her children were anything less than attractive. 

“Well, I hope you’re ready to get wet and wild with the rest, Leon!” Lorraine said winking at Leon in a way that made him cringe internally, unsure if it was from the phrasing, the insistent use of his name or the awkward body language that he was receiving.  

Leon looked away at the other participants in the car wash wishing more than anything he could be anywhere else but here as he watched them fill buckets with soapy water.  

Lorraine moved into his vision to indicate the lanky girls in bathing suits that were turning on hoses. “Those are my lovely daughters.” She said proudly with a smug grin. “Emily and Danielle.” 

Leon nodded, “Oh...I’m–” He remembered to smile. “I’ll have to go introduce myself.” Leon said politely nodding. “I’ll go see if they need any help over there.” Truthfully, Leon was just more than ready to make his escape from the two women.  

“Oh, I’m sure they’ll appreciate that, they could sure use a man’s help!” Lorraine said beaming at him hopefully, as if she was wishing that Leon would become a step son to her soon. 

“Isn’t he so polite?” His mother chimed in proudly. 

Leon resisted a groan and settled for a smile as he hurried away to the small group of girls who were now struggling to carry the filled buckets. “Need a hand?”  Leon asked. 

“Oh! We’re fine–” One of the lanky girls started to say but cut off abruptly when her eyes finally landed on him, “I mean, help would be great, yeah...” she said eyeing his arms like they were candy. The other girls giggled as they practically swarmed him which vaguely gave him PTSD flashbacks of the large group of zombies that he had encountered a week ago in the underground tunnels. Both looked equally hungry. 

“Are you new in town?” One of the girls asked getting far too close to his personal space and smiling flirtatiously. Her name was Clara if he recalled correctly, they had been in the same class from preschool to senior year and he was ninety percent certain that he had asked her out junior year and ended up rejected.  

Leon sighed, “No, it’s just been awhile.” he answered as he effortlessly lifted the two buckets and began to make his way in the direction that the girls had been heading, said girls not far behind. “Where am I taking this?” he asked to first on his right. 

“Just over there.” She said, flippantly pointing over to an empty area in the parking lot. “So, if you're not new, how come none of us recognize you?”  

“Yeah! Remind us of your name handsome!” Another chimed in. 

Leon set the bucket down and wiped his now wet hands off on his shirt as he turned to face the girls, “It’s Leon...pretty sure I went to high school with most of you.”  

“No way, Kennedy?!” 

“Holy-you look so different! I didn’t even recognize you!”  

_That much is obvious._  Leon thought as he resisted rolling his eyes. “Guess I grew up, funny how that works, huh?” He was pretty certain his joke wasn’t nearly funny enough to warrant the amount of laughter that he received for it. 

Leon couldn’t help but think that this was the kind of scene Sam would have enjoyed thoroughly, in high school he had always been the center of attention, surrounded by the pretty popular girls. He wondered why Sam had been so dead set on missing the opportunity to be fawned over, though perhaps this woman Leslie that he was marrying was the cause of the change in him. 

Maybe tigers really did change their stripes after all.  

Leon, however, couldn’t help but feel like he had been a little ruined by she who-shall-not-be-named (but wears red) because nothing about this experience was enjoyable to him. 

Ignoring the fawning women that were twisting their hair around their fingers and batting their eyelashes, Leon excused himself from the unimpressive crowd which moved together in a whispering huddle behind him. Leon regretted getting suckered in to do the fundraiser and he decided that he was going to take it up with Sam later. 

Figuring he should get to work so the day could end as soon as possible, he quickly shuffled over to the hoses to pull them up to the car wash area. Setting the hoses down, Leon straightened up to take in the rest of the activity surrounding him. 

His mother was setting up behind a table with some baked goods, cooing at the children who were peddling lemonade already to the staff, apparently not aware how these fundraisers worked. Lorraine seemed busy yelling at someone in the most fake polite way he had ever witnessed, and one of the girls he had just escaped was dumping one of the buckets of water over her friend completely defeating the purpose of him carrying it over to start with. 

A large van was pulling into a nearby parking spot where Leon stood, the blond felt his stomach drop when he recognized the familiar stringy figure of Lilly getting out of the side door. She was busy pulling out what appeared to be a large tray of cupcakes.  

He turned his back quickly, adamant in pretending not to notice her. His attempt was comparable to an ostrich putting its head in the sand, wistfully hoping that if he avoided eye contact, she would not see him. Leon chanced a glance to see her position and covertly moved sideways behind the large group of snickering girls to disguise himself from Lilly as she walked by oblivious of his presence. He watched from the corner of his eye as she continued on to her own baked goods stand that was a safe distance away. He sighed thankfully, not wanting to make any more awkward conversation with her. It was bad enough to see her at the store the night before with Cynthia.  

It wasn’t long before Leon found himself slumped dully with a pout on his face, holding a hose as he waited for the first victim that was willing to trust a group of giggling girls and an agent to wash their vehicles. This was not in his job description, send him alone to an infested city as a glorified exterminator any day...But volunteering at a carwash fundraiser? Somehow the carwash made him more nervous. This was not exactly his scene. 

Their first customer, appearing in a large truck, drove in containing a grinning red-haired farmer who had apparently spent too much time in the sun judging from the lobster colored skin. The girls rushed forward; the sound of their incessant laughter driving Leon up the wall as he carelessly hosed off the soapy concoction they scrubbed on with a tight-lipped expression on his face.  

The action was slow at the carwash for the first hour until one of the women sent out her beast of a child with a loud mouth to go bounce around and scream at cars. It seemed to gain some sympathy from the general public as cars began to drive into the lot, leaving their car to be washed as the public browsed the baked goods and donated to the children at the overcharged lemon stand. Leon almost wanted to laugh at the way they were smiling so deviously as they leafed through their new earnings like a rich man stacking his bills.  

The heat of the sun beat down on Leon’s back as noon rolled around and fed up the agent paused to pull off his shirt, one of the girls nearby suddenly seeming to struggle to close her mouth at the sight of him. Leon studiously ignored her as she not so subtly nudged her nearest companion and gestured towards him.  _Really, you’d think she’s never seen abs before._ Leon thought with a roll of his eyes as he tossed his shirt on a nearby chair and got back to work.  

It wasn’t till a good hour later that he noticed he’d gained quite a gaggle of onlookers, mostly housewives whispering to each other about how they wished their husbands looked something like him.  

“Did I marry too soon?” He heard one woman say, wishing she wasn’t so loud so he could ignore her better. “I think I might have settled.” 

Another woman groaned, shredding her eyes away from him, “Oh for the love of– Jill, just go have an affair already, we’re all sick of hearing about how much you hate your husband.” 

A loud shushing had the two women’s mouths snapping shut and turning to take in an older woman, her gaze disapproving “We are in the parking lot of the lord!” she said. 

_Y_ _e_ _ah, be_ _cause that’s what’s wrong with this picture..._ Leon thought as he cringed and did his best to try to scrub the conversation from his memory. 

“Leon!” His mother said practically right in his ear. 

Leon jolted and only just barely refrained from blasting her in the face with the hose. “Hey mom...” he mumbled as he returned to hosing down the car he was currently working on. 

Everything about Eleanor screamed smug as she eyed the quickly dispatching party of guilty woman. At least it would seem the desperate housewives were not willing to eyeball him with their show of debauchery when his mother was standing right next to him.  

“It seems you have a few fans.” she said, barely restraining a laugh. 

Leon couldn’t stop himself from glaring at his mother, which only made her laugh for real. 

“Did you need something mom?” He mumbled, making a point to avoid eye contact. 

“Oh, are you embarrassed?” Eleanor continued to laugh; her grin wide. 

“Mom!” 

“Ok, ok, I’ll back off.” She relented; hands held up in a placating manner. However, there was still a hint of an evil smile left on her face, “There’s someone I want you to see!”  

Leon felt dread build down to the very core of his being, a certain tingling sixth sense of what was coming. “Uh...well, I’d love to...” He said, trailing off as he searched franticly in his head for an excuse, “but...these cars aren’t going to wash themselves.”  

The excuse was lame even to his ears, he knew without even looking that his mom wasn’t buying it. It seemed most of the small population remaining in the town had already gone through the wash and his mom had always been skilled at reading people, even if she didn’t voice it most days. 

“Oh well, that’s an easy solution!” She said as she scanned the group of girls, “Kelsey!” she called. 

“Mrs. Kennedy?” One of the girls called back with a questioning smile on her face as she approached. 

Eleanor smiled at her before practically yanking the hose out of Leon’s hands and offering it to the girl, “Will you be a dear and take over for Leon for a bit? I need him for something.” 

“Of course!”  

“Wonderful, thank you so much!” Eleanor called over her shoulder as she practically dragged her reluctant son away. 

“Mom I swear if this is another attempt to find me a date–” 

“You already know her, you two would be perfect for each other! You used to hang out all the time together and I know she always liked you! It was so cute!” 

Leon’s eyes widened in alarm, “Wait mom, you aren’t thinking of–” He cut off as they came to a stop in front of Lilly herself. 

“Oh, hey Lilly...” He said awkwardly. 

Lilly shifted uncomfortably and gave him a clearly fake smile, “Hey Leon!” she said with forced cheer. 

Eleanor frowned, looking between the two of them like she had expected something more, “Well, I was going to suggest that maybe you two should go on a date but...” She trailed off. 

“Oh, he has a girlfriend already Mrs. Kennedy.” Lilly interrupted before his mom could go any further. 

Leon wanted to hide under a rock as he watched his mother’s eyes slowly widen, clearly processing the words. He couldn’t believe how fast that lie blew up in his face. 

“You do?” She said directing all her attention at him. 

Leon slowly glanced at Lilly who was busy looking back and forth between the two. Caught between a rock and a hard place Leon resisted melting in despair. 

He had two options, admit that he lied to Lilly to avoid having to reject her again...or also lie to his mother and say yes. 

He hated himself as he took the cowardly way out and nodded at his mother, “Yeah...yep, I have a girlfriend.”  

The worst part only coming when he realized his mom actually bought it, her smile so wide and relieved.  


End file.
